Quarantine and chill and kindness chatty clubhouse: Jump in and join the conversation! All is welcome!

[lynxstch]

Good morning.

It‘s 19 here this morning, going up to 36.

I heard back from the seller of the Amazon package stuck in Baltimore. He will issue a refund. Out of stock now. It’s a book so will try Barnes and Noble curbside pickup.

Surprised to hear that it's an Amazon pkg stuck in Baltimore. Amazon pkgs are the ONLY one's that I have gotten without them getting lost/being late etc. I asked the carrier yesterday how come Amazon's can get through the postal system and get here, and nothing else can seem to? I had an ebay seller refund my money for one missing pkg, since tracking shows that it left one MI post office to go to another MI postal facility,on Dec 9, going priority mail, and nothing after that. He told me to ship it back to him if it comes--I said not unless you are going to pay me to ship it back to you priority mail, as it would cost me at least 1/2 of what the item cost me to send it back I told him if it shows up, I will just pay him for it again through paypal. No sense on both of us losing out on money.

They stopped doing sorting mail at our local post office, so now everything has to go from here..to Baltimore, and then back to here..it takes 3 days just to get a letter from here to anywhere in town lately Hope you can find the book at Barnes and Nobles!


I just called the other company that I am missing 2 pkgs for. They issued me a refund, marked them as lost, and reordered them at the same sale price with free shipping. Claim they will be here by Jan 8,,wanna take bets? lol! They also claim the 1 shirt that was out of stock was shipped this morning,,I'll believe that one when I see it in the mailbox!

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Good Saturday morning to all and

I'm so sorry some of you are still having mail trouble I've noticed tracking does not update very often anymore.

I finished Merry and Bright last night about a small town candy cane company. It was literally sweet and I liked that it showed us recipe pages and some pictures from the Grandma's cookbook. Again, I would have preferred Grandma live sharing it with us. All these small towns with family owned shops that touch the community are so appealing. I'd love to be part of one

Stay safe and Happy Saturday to all.

 

[bobbiwoz]

We had a package delivered to us from Houston today!


Our package going to Houston went up to Boston, and seems to be staying there.

 

[Snowysmom]

I don't think the post office was well prepared for the onslaught of online shopping this year. I think they should have been considering what has been going on. I have a Kohls package lingering in New Jersey. I doubt it is going to make its' way to MA. I have some clothes for DGS birthday as part of the order. I will call after the holiday to get my refund for a lost order. Amazon has so far been able to get everything to us. We have a warehouse in the next town and the delivery service vans seem to make most of the deliveries to us so we are lucky there.

DH is doing fine after his fall. He has a couple of small scrapes but no aches or bruises. I have asked him to look where he is going when it is icy and snowy out or actually whenever he is out and around. If there is alot of rock salt or slush in an area please go elsewhere to walk. Trader Joe's did fix the issue by the time we were done shopping so that was good.

We are wrapping more gifts, I am coloring my hair, and we took the dog for a walk. We still need to decorate the tree. That will probably be tomorrow's task along with starting the baking. Younger DS's kiddies love Elf on the Shelf. They show us where the Elf hides whenever we videochat with them. It is so cute. Older DS's kiddies are very adamant about what they want for Christmas. The older one loves play doh and My little pony. The younger one loves construction toys. It makes it easy to buy gifts for them.

I watched Heart of the Holiday on Hallmark and it was a nice movie. I have seen parts of Merry and Bright and that seems good too. I am looking forward to seeing what is on tonight.

Happy Saturday.

 

[Breezy_Carol]

Good QUACKING afternoon.

We drove to Middletown, picked up the grand-dog and took her to her groomer's appt. Groomer said it was ok for the dog to come but didn't want her COVID positive owner to bring her. No problem. Paisley had no problem getting in our car and leaving with us but when we got to the groomer Paisley wanted nothing to do with going in, and she is STRONG. Got her in ok.

After we dropped her off then went to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge for an hour. It was cold but not windy so really quite pleasant as we were dressed appropriately. Saw snow geese, Canada geese, a bufflehead, a heron, an egret, a flock of cardinals, 3 vultures lunching on a raccoon, male and female Mallard ducks, and some unidentified water fowl. It was a nice visit.

We left to head back to the groomer (in Smyrna) but then heard she wouldn't be done for 45 more minutes so we went to Dunkin for a snack then drove by Ronny's Garden World to see what we could see. @easyas123, we heard they are closing for good at the end of the year.

Back at DD's we hung out in the back yard for a bit because DGD wanted to visit. Both littles and DD now cleared from quarantine, DSIL has one more day. Home now.

 

[flyingdumbo127]

I agree about the post office, Snowysmom! They also should have been better supported all along. Enjoy the movies! I'm now partway through Christmas in Grand Valley--love the lodge!

I'm glad you got to see your grandkids and grand dog, too, Carol. Continued prayers for you and your family!

I'm finally feeling warmed up now at almost 1pm here. Now regular mail yet but did get paper clips from Amazon.

 

[NYCgrrl]

Just so you know it was epically stupid of me to hold off baking Christmas cookies so late in the game given I’m using a toaster oven.
One batch done for the day; three to go. Mind you, the doughs were already made this is just decorating and baking that took from 10:00 AM to now. Well, I also seasoned, scored the fat cap, and set up Friday’s pork roast to air dry but still if I had a functioning full sized oven on hand the cookie making would go much faster. At this rate I won’t be finished until Wednesday I fear.
Haven't started decorating the house yet either.
This is going to be a perfect ending to a crazy year.
Back to the salt mines with me.

 

[easyas123]

we heard they are closing for good at the end of the year.

We heard same thing last night! Hoped the person who heard it might have just misunderstood the fact that they close down in the winter for a bit but I think it might be the real deal if so that’s a damn shame.

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Slipping thread!

I give thumbs up to Christmas at Grand Valley. I did love the lodge and how they offer a children's Christmas camp. I also liked the Dad's diner that he had owned for many years. I do like Brennan Elliot. It's just odd to me sometimes to see him outside of Dr. Nick on String Medicine, a show I enjoyed the first two seasons of.

Sorry about long time stores closing down I hope your cookies turn out great, NYCgrrl, sorry they are a hassle though

 

[apirateslifeforme]

I'm liking the Quackadoodle...

I had a kringle once - at the Norway pavilion in Epcot! A long time ago now...and it was quite good! Around here, the only place I've ever seen one is at Trader Joe's, I think. I remember my mom asking what it was. Surprised she didn't buy one - I can't keep her away from the giant danishes at Costco...

Wow, I'd take a nice balmy 30 degrees! It was FIVE degrees this morning when DH and I went out. I need to move south; I am NOT into this New England winter stuff!

We had no internet last night and even lost our cable for a while. We finally got it back, just enough to get on Netflix to keep watching our show (DH and I are into Travelers right now...sci-fi show with Eric McCormack in the lead. We're almost done with it, though). Couldn't get on the internet at all, though, not even with my phone. Our neighbors across the street still had theirs, though - we can see their TV from our window; every morning we can see that their 2-year-old daughter is watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse - and apparently there were no outages in our area. Really hope we don't need a new modem. This is NOT a good time for that expense!

DH and I got up early this morning to see if Kohl's had any snowpants left for kids. I really didn't think ahead and Josh just can't wear 3T anymore. Unfortunately, they had none left at all, but I got a notion to try nylon track pants with the fleece lining. Also picked up a new pair of gloves (nylon with fleece inside, which is what inspired me to try the track pants) and a couple sets of thermal underwear for him. I saw a holiday picture frame that I immediately loved, and it was 50% off (so about $12), but DH was giving me "the look" and I didn't get it. Then we stopped at Walgreens for Visa gift cards for our nieces before returning home. I found the photo frame on Kohls.com and it was marked down to $9.59 on the site! My mother told me to order it, so I found a coupon code for 30% off, plus we have MVC status and therefore get free shipping, so I only paid $7.14 for it! Then I got Josh to start his new "book" for writing class, and then we intended to watch a movie, but then the magic of the now-restored internet reminded me that someone in town had scheduled a Santa Claus drive-by, same as the Easter Bunny one in April. Josh had been bothering us to go back outside, so we all bundled up and spent a few hours out there. He and DH built a fort, then DH helped him sled down the snowbanks on either side of the driveway (they work just as well as the big hills ). Right as the Santa people posted that they were getting close to our neighborhood, Josh hit the wall - he decided he was cold and wet and tired. We quickly got him changed into warm, dry clothes and got back outside, just in time to wave to Santa.

We ate dinner early, just soup and grilled cheeses tonight. Now we're watching The Grinch (the 2018 CGI one) and Josh is whining about how hungry he is. His bedtime was 45 minutes ago

Tomorrow we have to go visit my in-laws. My FIL's birthday is on Monday, plus we have food for them. My mom made "Lil' Cheddar Meatloaves," a broccoli and corn side dish, and sweet corn and smoked sausage chowder for them. I'm getting hungry again just writing about it...

I'm still frozen from spending 2 hours outside today, too.

Thank you, Apirateslifeforme. Oh no, poor Josh! Prayers he is okay. I love that you have a "Special Delivery" sack. Does it say "From Santa" on it?

It's this one, from Lillian Vernon...(with Josh's name, of course )

 

[Breezy_Carol]

After we got home from our morning outing, we ate lunch and went for another drive in the other direction. Ended up in PA at the Herr's Factory to see their lights. Usually they are well attended but there year it was a mob scene. It is a free, drive through display. They had the fire police to direct traffic off the main road which made it better. Still could not believe the crowd. Here are a couple of pictures.

We heard same thing last night! Hoped the person who heard it might have just misunderstood the fact that they close down in the winter for a bit but I think it might be the real deal if so that’s a damn shame.

I first heard it from a source I wasn't sure I trusted so drove by. No mention anywhere except "all sales final" which is not unusual this time of year. I talked to DD and she said there was a lot of discussion on the MOT page and it was true.

So we went to DE and PA today. Good things those two states are exempt from our no travel order.

 

[Kirby]

Lou Lou (DGD) got up this morning and found Toot Toot, the Elf, upside down in Grandma's stocking with only his lower legs hanging out. She got a kick out of that!

My son ordered a weighted blanket for his fiance for Christmas and it seemed to have been lost in never never land so he canceled the order. Guess what showed up yesterday? The blanket of course! And he had already ordered another one from a different vendor.

Today was a laid back day. Did my housework and paid some bills. Lou Lou has done well with Lil Joe gone but you can tell she misses him. My DD, Carol, was very fidgety today too. It's too quiet around here.

I tried a new recipe tonight, a very easy one. It's called Slow Cooker Dump and Go Cheesy Chicken. Found in on AllRecipes.com. Served it over rice with steamed broccoli. DH said he would eat it again so I am going to try it one more time before deciding to keep the recipe or not.

 

[flyingdumbo127]

You are a great shopper, Apirateslifeforme, way to get a bargain! Thank you for sharing the special delivery bag, I love it I'm so glad you had some fun snow time with Josh and got to see Santa drive by, too

Thank you for sharing such pretty lights, Carol.

Kirby, a laid back day is a nice one to enjoy!

Stay warm this evening, friends!

 

[lynxstch]

Good morning everyone! Going to be a heatwave today, we may get to 42, lol! Hubby has an eye Dr appt at noon, and we are going to ride out to one of the grocery stores that's a little farther away and we don't get to often. But we will be about 1/2 way there at the eye Drs anyhow, so it will make our Sunday routine a little different. Hard to believe that Christmas is only 5 days away, and a whole new year only a week after that. Despite all that's gone on this year, the year has kind of flown by.

This thread seems to have lost some of it's 'regular' members, starting with Tina (lovemygoofy), who seems to have disappeared. She started the thread and I wish she would come back to see that it's still going, and that we have gotten through some of the year together. It helps me (and I'm sure a few others), to be able to just kick back and talk about whatever is going on in our lives, share pictures, recipes, etc.

Have a wonderful Sunday!

 

[lynxstch]

Just a reminder,,,tomorrow is Dec 21,,Winter Solstice,,and time to look for the Christmas Star 45 min after sunset, in the southwest portion of the sky! I'll post this again tomorrow, so noone misses it if they want to look for it. You all put me in charge of the reminders, lol!

 

[PollyannaMom]

Hard to believe that Christmas is only 5 days away, and a whole new year only a week after that.

I agree!

I've been thinking about Tina lately, too. and hoping nothing happened to her or her family. - IIRC, was she considering taking a new job? I really hope that's the answer, and she just doesn't have time for DISing right now.

 

[tazdev3225]

Morning all.

Yesterday was a day of news and most was not good. My grandson was in an accident the other day. He hit a patch of black ice. Thankfully his wife and the baby and he are all OK. The car not so much. $4,500 worth of damage. He is paying out of pocket. Yes he does have insurance but he went with Progressive when he bought his car over the summer. They gave him a decent price, 2 months later they raised it over $400 a month. He wants to switch carriers and he knows a faulted accident will not be in his favor. At least it spurred me into action to go order the cabinets this week. I told my son I will cover what he is short for the car out of what I planned to pay him. And yes I am very happy that they are all OK, That is the most important thing.

My mom called, I knew we would talk within a week. My cousin may have cancer. The drs. found a mass on his spine. I asked my daughter and she said that is almost always not good. I hope the tests show something else but I am prepared to hear the worst. I feel bad for my aunt.

Then more news about another cousin. We got back in contact with her about a year ago. After my grandmother died she blamed my dad and aunt for her death. My Gram was almost 95 and had a massive stroke six years earlier. She hated that my dad put Gram in a nursing home. There was no choice since she was paralyzed. Anyway last January I was googling something and found out that my cousin's mother had died. She was my dad's youngest sister. I really hate google sometimes, that was the second aunt's death I found on google. My mom got in touch with my cousin and she is now back in our lives. She really has no other family so that is a good thing.

Anyway during the storm we had the other day her heater went out. Her landlord is more of a slum lord and said he'd get around to it. My cousin is raising her niece and nephew so she was worried about them. Luckily a neighbor took them in for the night. After my mom reached out to my cousin she joined our church's Zoom service. She has since joined 100%, giving and asking for envelopes. The one child is autistic and everyone loves him. When my mom told everyone what was going on there were offers of space heaters, what can we do to help beyond that, take them some food, etc. Our church has been very lucky in that we have some great financial people who have gotten us through the church's closure. They are giving my cousin a check for over $500. I was amazed when I heard that. It can help my cousin with the adoption or getting a house which she has been saving for. Mom and I are delivering everything tomorrow or Tuesday.

And I seriously did find out 2 aunts died on google. My god mother had been ill and we knew she was dying of heart failure but she had an evil housekeeper. My mom's uncle had died and I was googling the funeral information. When I put in his name my aunt's obituary popped up. She had died about 2 months earlier and the housekeeper never contacted us. We were my aunt's only family. I contacted the state's probate office in NJ and figured out why. She had my aunt change her will again and had it in probate the day my aunt died, by time we found out she already had all of my aunt's possessions and had sold the house. She had tried that once before while my aunt was in rehab near us and we knew about it so we were able to correct the situation. Then the housekeeper spirited my aunt back to NJ and did it again. I hope the blood money was worth it because karma will get her. I still get really angry about it sometimes. I was her goddaughter and should have done more to protect her but I also know my aunt was not very intelligent and was a narcissist who was easily persuaded by that person. The housekeeper and her husband had been stealing from my aunt for years. Some of the story is actually in one of my signature trip reports.

My dad's sister I was googling her address for my daughter and the obituary popped up. I really hate calling my mom with the conversation starting, "So mom I was on google and ---".

I really want 2020 to be over especially since 2021 is bringing me a new baby to dote on.

Have a good day all.

 

[tazdev3225]

Deleted somehow it double posted

 

[lynxstch]

@tazdev3225 Wow..so much not so good news. I am very sorry to read all of this. Sending you hugs and prayers. I am glad your son, DIL, and baby were not hurt. That's a blessing. Cars are replaceable, people are not! Here's hoping that the new year brings you less sad news and much happier news. God Bless

 

[tazdev3225]

@tazdev3225 Wow..so much not so good news. I am very sorry to read all of this. Sending you hugs and prayers. I am glad your son, DIL, and baby were not hurt. That's a blessing. Cars are replaceable, people are not! Here's hoping that the new year brings you less sad news and much happier news. God Bless

I try and not be so negative but somedays you get slammed. The good news was the kids are OK. First accidents are scary but the car can be repaired. They are all OK.

My cousin could be OK although I sort of know it's cancer. His father died of that too and at around the same age. My cousin is a lot like my uncle was which is why my aunt divorced my uncle. It is out of my hands beyond prayers for my cousin and my aunt to have the strength to handle it. She's a strong woman with a deep faith and I admire her more than she knows. She will handle it.

My other cousin will get through it all. She has had a rough life and always comes out a bit stronger in the end. Just needs someone to lean on now and again. She found that in my church family. We are small but a mighty force.

Trying to find the positives in life. I am learning they are there sometimes you just need to look for them.